CMA CGM Florida, one of seven round-the-world ships, is seen here in the Panama Canal

The latest news from CMA CGM brings good tidings for those looking for a single voyage round the world. Round-the-world voyages will now be available from Houston, Mobile, Miami and Jacksonville, which has not been available since Rickmers stopped carrying passengers through the Suez Canal in 2011.

Because of a change in the way the Pacific Express 3 Line is operated we can now offer the service as a full 77-day Round-the-World freighter cruise from four US ports as well as Singapore or Hong Kong. Ships in this line have been trading both ways via Panama but will now return to Asia via the Cape of Good Hope, with a call at Durban on the way to Singapore and Hong Kong. The transit time from Jacksonville to Durban is 22 days, while Durban to Singapore is 14 days.

The full round-the-world voyage takes 77 days and seven passenger-friendly ships on the run means an average frequency of about every 11 days. The fare for the full 77-day circumnavigation is €8,470 per person double occupancy or single, or €9,240-10,010 for sole use of a double cabin (depending which ship). Sample one-way fares are Miami to Durban in 25 days at €2,7500 (€3,000-3,250 single), Hong Kong to Houston in 29 days at €3,190 (€3,480-3,770 single) or Houston to Singapore in 44 days at €4,400 (€5,280-5,720 single).

The Cruise Examiner for 8th August 2016

The CMA CGM Amber and Coral sail the same Le Havre – Southampton – New York route the s.s. France once did

In January, we brought you the relaunch of CMA CGM’s Europe-Australia cargo-passenger service with four new ships. But now, with so many things happening at CMA CGM, we have decided to devote this column to bringing readers up to date. First off, CMA CGM is reviving its North Atlantic service, with four ships on two regular routes. It has also recently launched a 7-ship 84-day Round-the-World service from Ensenada, Mexico, and Singapore. In Europe, it has added four ships to its new Baltic Levant Express service that connects the UK and European ports with St Petersburg, Russia, at one end and Alexandria, Egypt, at the other. And finally, the purchase of Kingston Container Terminal may soon see more passenger trade via Jamaica.

Christmas and New Year greetings from British passengers Pat and John Pridmore, who joined CMA CGM Bougainville (above) in Southampton, the day after her christening in Le Havre as the largest container ship under French flag, for her first round voyage from Europe to the Far East.

The view from our window is restricted. It is of a steel container,almost near enough for us to reach out and touch. It tells us that it is “super-heavy” and capable of holding “32,500 kilos gross.” You would not want this thing falling on your foot. There are some eighteen thousand such containers on our vessel, stacked in tiers twenty high, eleven below decks and nine above, ranged in ranks from bow to stern.

We are passengers – the only passengers – on the three-month maiden voyage of the CMA CGM Bougainville, one of the world’s largest container vessels. We live in “the castle”, a tall thin tower amidships, surmounted by the bridge, where everyone from captain to galley-hand is housed. (We must hide somewhere else if we are attacked by pirates, but we mustn’t tell you where that is). Our Leviathan is a colossus. One perambulation of the deck is a half-a-mile walk. Most days we complete several circuits. Most days too we spend time on the bridge. It is a huge privilege to be allowed to visit the bridge whenever we like and to see for ourselves how this enormous ship is guided on its way – even if there is much we do not understand about what we’re seeing.

CMA CGM chairman Jacques Saadé, 3rd from left, with French president Francois Hollande, who christened the CMA CGM Bougainville at Le Havre on October 6, 2015

Our voyage from Southampton has taken us to European ports, through the Mediterranean and the Suez Canal, to ports in China, South Korea, and Malaya. Now we are on the long haul home. This is no cruise. We are spared round-the-clock forced-feeding, tacky stage-shows, and – we hope this doesn’t sound too unsociable – two or three thousand other passengers. To be sure, we are travelling in comfort. We are well-fed – after all, our vessel is French. Our simple cabin is sufficiently furnished. We have the use of facilities provided for the officers and crew. There is a slightly larger version of the tank you find at your fishmonger for the accommodation of live lobsters. In this we can splash around when the surrounding sea which feeds it is warm enough. There is a running machine and a ping-pong table. We are both pretty useless at ping-pong but that at least means we are evenly matched.

We have no Christmas lights to enjoy in our cabin. But we have the highlights of our voyage to savour. Among them have been the warm golden stones of Malta, the unfolding theatre along the banks of the Suez Canal, a day in the Arab Emirate of Khor al Fakkan (for us a window into an unknown world) – and, more disturbing, the menacing shape of submarines off the South Korean coast.

We have taken every opportunity to go ashore in China. Here memories compete to be mentioned. We will return in our mind to the four-storey pharmacy that gave us a glimpse of the range and riches of Chinese medicine. We will remember local restaurants, rich local food and local – and invariably friendly – people. We will remember what we learned from simply watching. For example, we sat by a children’s playground in a public park and noticed how the children, mostly pre-schoolers, played together – or rather how they didn’t play together, for of course each of these children was an only child, an offspring of the state’s “one child” policy.

Our slow boat to China (and back) has given us plenty of time – so hard to find in everyday life – for reflection. We are learning things we hope we’ll remember when we’re home. We’re learning the folly of being in such a hurry. We’re beginning to see that flying across the globe in half a day doesn’t help you understand the people you meet when you land.

And all those containers we carry raise another question – where to draw the line between what we need and what we want. No one knows what is inside these containers, but it is safe to assume that everything “made in China” – that’s to say about everything that furnishes our lives these days – is sealed within them. The question is what proportion of this vast cargo actually contributes to our well-being.

Above all there is the immense presence of the sea itself – the sea which we experienced in some at least of its many moods. Even as passengers with no responsibility for bringing us all safely to harbour, we are learning a fresh respect for the sea. What is the little parcel of dry land to which we cling other than a tiny and precarious bridgehead thrust into the waters that always threaten to return and engulf us? Tsunamis and rising sea levels should at least suggest that thoughts are not altogether far-fetched.

We trust that when we step ashore at Southampton we will not forget what this voyage has taught us. Above all, we hope that we will not forget the Filipinos. The Bougainville is commanded by a French captain and most of his officers are French, but the rest of his crew are all from the Philippines. So it is on most of the world’s container vessels. The round-the-clock maintenance work is done by Filipinos. On back-to-back tours of duty, they are away from home for nine months at a stretch. But they always seem to be smiling. In this troubled world, they would certainly want to join us in wishing you and yours a joyful Christmas and health and happiness in the New Year.

The CMA CGM Bouganville sails in the weekly French Asia Line 1 service, 84 days round trip from Southampton via Dunkirk, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Zeebrugge and Le Havre, through Malta and Suez to Khor Fakkan, Yantian, Tianjin, Dalian, Pusan, Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, Yantian, Port Kelang and back via Suez and Algeciras to Southampton. Each ship in this line carries up to ten passengers in five cabins.

For further details on booking passage on this route or any other cargo voyage please call Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on +44 (0)20 7723 2450 or e-mail PassageEnquiry@aol.com

With CMA CGM’s French Asia Line 1 dropping its calls in Hong Kong, there will no longer be any direct route betwen Southampton and Hong Kong. And, for the moment, with no other carrier taking passengers to Hong Kong, there will no longer be a direct UK to Hong Kong link.

.Now, Southampton to Yantian, near Hong Kong, by French Asia Line 1 is 38 days and Le Havre to Yantian 30 days (Malta to Yantian is 24 days).

.Passengers returning from Hong Kong will now have to embark in the nearby Shenzhen ports of Yantian (20 miles away) or Chiwan (22 miles). For example, travellers can board in Yantian for a 24-day trip with French Asia Line 3 to Le Havre, with a call at Port Kelang en route. An alternative for direct return to the UK is to board French Asia Line 1 in Yantian for the 26-day voyage back to Southampton via Port Kelang and Algeciras.

.These changes have been brought about because of schedule adjustments in a cooperation agreement with China Shipping Container Lines and the United Arab Shipping Company, together with the introduction to the China trade of ultra large container ships (ULCCs) of 11,000 to 16,000 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent) container capacity.

.Hong Kong continues to offer several services to the Americas, however, both North and South, as well as South Africa and Australasia.

.For further details on sailing to and from Hong Kong or nearby ports please contact Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on +44 (0)20 7723 2450 or e-mail cruisepeopleltd@aol.com..

Several months ago, our client Peter Giles travelled in the CMA CGM Musca and was kind enough to send his report. Travels have delayed us posting it but here it is now with Peter’s comments:-

Since returning from Australia in November, I’ve been preoccupied catching up with the inevitable consequences of two months’ absence as well as all Christmas and New Years. I do, though, want to let you know how much I enjoyed my “cargo cruise” from Southampton to Port Kelang aboard the CMA CGM Musca.

.You had, quite rightly, emphasized the need for flexibility in one’s travel arrangements, as there are so many variables involved in the logistics of large container ship movements, some of which demand decisions with short times. Over a long period of time our sailing date had moved from September 11th to the 13th, the 14th, then the 16th and finally the 19th. Just the week before planned embarkation, the Southampton port agent was in contact with me advising that weekend movements in the port were somewhat chaotic due to multiple late arrivals. Musca had meanwhile gone from Rotterdam straight to Zeebrugge rather than calling at Southampton first. Even so, she was held off the Isle of Wight for hours before being allowed into port late on the night of 18th September with a planned departure of 12:00 the next day. The port agent had telephoned me on the 18th to suggest I arrive at the Port Security Office as early as possible because they might be able to set sail as soon as 09:45.

.None of this caused any problem; in fact, by arriving at the Container Port before 08:00, we avoided all the peak traffic, so my wife had a relaxing journey as my driver. From this point on, I found my expectations were exceeded. It’s a daunting sight to be standing on the quayside looking up at the ship’s gangway running all the way up to the upper deck: with Musca‘s considerable freeboard, the gangway seems to go on for ever – very different to boarding a vessel like the P&O Aurora, where the gangway runs to the ship from high up on the terminal building!

.I had expected to carry all my luggage (1 large & 1 small case) aboard myself, but the port agent’s minibus driver insisted on taking my large case aboard. Once brief reception formalities were completed, the steward took both my cases along the corridor to the lift and settled me in to my cabin on F deck. To my surprise, although it was now 08:20 and breakfast time was officially 07:00 – 08:00, the steward (Syrel Alimpuyo, from the Philippines, official job title Messman) invited me to come down to the Officers’ Mess, where he prepared a welcome meal of scrambled eggs with all the trimmings. Not that it mattered to me, but we did depart at 12:00.

.CMA CGM Musca, one of twelve similar vessels on the FAL3 route, is big (11,040 TEUs, Summer DWT 131,830 tons, 347 m LOA) but is eclipsed by the company’s newest 16,000 TEU ships (CMA CGM Marco Polo, Alexander von Humboldt and Jules Verne), themselves now overtaken by Maersk Line’s brand new McKinney Møller at 18,000 TEUs. Even so, to get acquainted with Musca is to understand the huge and sophisticated scale on which the modern commercial world operates. If, like me, you’re interested in these things and prefer in any event not to share your transportation with thousands of other passengers, this is a remarkable and privileged experience.

Cabin living area

.Musca has four double cabins on F deck (three face forward and one aft), the penultimate deck level before the bridge, and above container load height. Only the captain and chief engineer have their cabins and office on G deck, together with a Pilot’s cabin. On this voyage I was the only passenger, so not only did I have a very spacious cabin all to myself, but the entire passengers’ recreation lounge as well..

CMA CGM Musca is very typical of the international multiplicity which characterizes the maritime industry: French company owned and operated, registered in London (a port she never visits) and thus subject to British merchant marine regulations, captain and officers mainly Croatian plus Ukrainian and Filipino, lower ranks Filipino, official language on board being English – and there were notices on display reminding people of this fact. ..

Cabin sleeping area

Understandably, when a bunch of Croatians come together at lunch or dinner, they will speak their native language, often quite excitably; but, since the Ukrainians and Croatians did not speak each others’ languages, there were usually interludes of English conversation, and the captain was always attentive to bringing me into discussions from my adjacent table. I can handle Italian, German and French , but none of their languages. The Filipino officers usually seemed to work differential shifts and took their meals in the crew mess, but I was struck by the polite and friendly behaviour of all 28 members of the ship’s complement..

Hospitality on the bridge, to which I had almost unrestricted access, was very enjoyable, where I could study the output of the control and navigation systems, monitor the charts and look up all manner of maritime details in the extensive library of reference manuals – and the watch officers competed with each other to make the best espresso or cappuccino with their fresh coffee machine. I had expected the bridge to be out of bounds to me when a pilot was on board, but was delighted to be there during the Suez Canal transit – it might well have had to be different had there been several other passengers.

.On the first full day at sea I was given a very comprehensive introduction to and tour of all facilities and stations relevant to on-board safety and emergencies. Quite apart from the emergency procedures summarised in a folder in my cabin, together with hard hat, ear defenders, and full immersion suit, the formal safety introduction included familiarisation with one of the two fully enclosed lifeboats, as well as a visit to the “citadel”, which is a large secure facility accessed via the stern lower deck. The citadel’s purpose is to provide impenetrable protection for crew (and passengers) in the event of a hostile boarding: while the ship cannot be navigated or controlled from there, it does contain all forms of marine communication for continuous contact with emergency agencies, both military and civilian. During our voyage to Port Kelang Captain Dakic organised two fire fighting emergency drills which were formally timed with all appropriate reporting and subsequent debriefing. There is no substitute for the reassurance of knowing that everyone is quite clear what they have to do in the event of any type of emergency.

.While it is quite unlikely that anyone could actually manage a seaborn hostile boarding of a ship the size and design of Musca, all CMA CGM vessels operating in known areas of high risk are equipped with very effective anti-grappling devices around the stern lower deck – trained Royal Marine Commandos have failed to get past these, even when stationary in calm water. When we passed through the Gulf of Aden a full lighting blackout was enforced, which meant all illumination except navigation lights was made invisible from the outside. Again, the guiding principle was to make no convenient assumptions and to take nothing for granted..

CMA CGM Musca passes through Suez

My main motives in choosing to travel by container ship rather than simply catching an aircraft from London to Perth, Western Australia (my ultimate destination) were: to enjoy the peace and rest of a long sea voyage, get plenty of sea air, pass gradually from one time zone to another, read and write at leisure, observe how these giants of the sea operate and how their crews live, and to eat three square meals a day – the latter being something I rarely do at home, despite being one of the minority who could actually benefit from gaining some weight! I can say with confidence that these objectives were all very well served – my only regret being that Musca couldn’t take me all the way to Perth...I did miss two meals during my 26 days on board: a breakfast one morning when I overslept (though Syrel subsequently reminded me that I could come down to the Mess at any time to get cereals, toast and coffee), and a dinner one evening when I simply had no capacity for any more food, settling instead for some fruit. The meals were good and varied, with some amusing Filipino versions of the menu descriptions (e.g. Chicken Gordon for Cordon Bleu, Crockets for Potato Croquettes, Leche Flan which proved to be Creme Caramel). Captain Dakic occasionally influenced the choice of menu by calling for fish as well as meat, and bringing out the ice cream or the blue cheese. Wine was usually served with dinner, with the alternative of German lager if preferred – the only exception being while we were in port at Jeddah, when all alcohol had to be locked away in the ship’s bonded store: “Saudi prohibition”, as the captain ruefully described it! On two or three occasions meat was barbequed in a surprisingly large semi-enclosed BBQ facility on E deck: there was room enough for the crew to sit and eat in the same facility, while the officers and I were served in the Mess..
.Keeping fit is a matter to be taken seriously when you’re at sea for months on end. If you take two tours of the upper deck on Musca, you will have walked 1.5 km. For me as a passenger, I was required to contact the bridge first, so they could advise me of any work in progress on the upper deck and they would be aware of where I was going; I would then let them know when I returned. One would not normally be allowed on the upper deck after dark or in extreme weather conditions and certainly not when cargo operations were underway in port. Common sense is required on deck at all times, as much of the time no one will be able to see you – least of all from the bridge. I always made a point of walking down from F deck to B deck for all meals, though it was a tall order to walk back up again after three courses, so the lift was usually preferred afterwards..
.The alternative, though, was the gymnasium – well equipped with treadmill, weights, punchbag, as well as table tennis and darts – although the most impressive sight was the oldest crewmember, the 61-year-old chief engineer, jogging round the upper deck. He did this most days, irrespective of the high temperatures, finishing by returning to his cabin on G deck via the external stairs. Even though I’m seven years older, he made me feel quite inadequate as I smiled at him through the window from my air conditioned comfort in the passenger lounge. Then, if you’re not hot enough, there’s always the sauna! Better still was the lure of the swimming pool, freshly filled with seawater pumped up from the Red Sea at 32°C..
.Management gurus will always emphasize the importance of teamwork and bonding when considering how the best organisations operate. A real sense of mutual support, as well as personal commitment, was very evident aboard Musca, and there is always plenty for everyone to do, both mundane as well as technically complicated – in fact, it is remarkable that a complex vessel of this size, running 24/7, only requires a crew of 28. Officers and crew rotate at different intervals, from three months to as long as nine or occasionally twelve, so individuals go on leave and are replaced on a continuous rolling basis. Any running repairs are handled according to circumstances, with any major works being undertaken in port where, if necessary, additional spare parts might have to be made available. The ship does, though, carry a wide range of spares: I even noticed a new piston and connecting rod in the engine room. If additional skills and manpower should be required, company engineers are flown out to join the ship at a port of call and will stay aboard for as long as it takes..

Passenger Giles (check shirt) with captain and crew

An on-deck BBQ party was organised one evening as we cruised across the Indian Ocean – this was on the starboard side of F deck, which was large enough to have a big portable BBQ and tables and benches for all to be seated. Several of the Filipino crew were keen amateur musicians and there was no shortage of entertainment, much enjoyed by all. I was quite surprised by the number of guitars on board, together with microphones, amplifiers and speakers. Making your own amusement is a valuable skill..
.Extended cargo operations which seemed to go on forever in both Beirut and Jeddah made a further dent in our schedule – and we had waited a whole day outside Beirut pending clearance to get in on a berth. Such are the routine frustrations confronting these ships – even if the vessel is ready to go, you’re still dependent upon tugs and pilot. While the plan had been to arrive at Port Kelang on 13th October (having originally been the 11th), we were only able to get there on the morning of 15th October. What had originally been anticipated as a 28 day voyage had been replanned at 24 days when the Southampton and Zeebrugge calls were reversed, but had gone out again to 26 days due to the further delays. CMA CGM’s operations manager responsible for the FAL3 route had once told me all his ships had operated to schedule over the last two years; I know now how he did that: by moving the goalposts! To be fair and realistic, I don’t envy him the constant challenges of his job though. As things worked out, I had no regrets at all..
.Captain Dakic had offered me my own on-board email account quite early on. I didn’t do this, as I didn’t want to encourage a flood of incoming messages, especially those of a casual nature. Instead, at his invitation, I used his email account to keep my wife up to date, to confirm progress with a friend of mine who had been trying to track the ship on-line via AIS – impossible between Suez and the Malacca Strait unless you can justify the cost of Satellite AIS – and to contact the hotel I had prearranged in Kuala Lumpur. When I disembarked, most crew-members made a point of saying farewell and wishing me luck, and they insisted on carrying my luggage down to the quayside. The captain had also taken it upon himself to negotiate with the Port Agent in Port Kelang for him to get me to central Kuala Lumpur after taking me to the Malaysian Immigration Office outside the port for passport formalities. This the agent did for US$20, good value considering how far he drove me and the 1¼ hour Kommuter train ride, for which he paid, and which deposited me just 100 metres from my hotel. It’s not the captain’s job to do these things, but these people know how to use their contacts and get things done..
.The humidity in Kuala Lumpur was very oppressive and , while I had intended to look around for a couple of days, I was not displeased to be on a flight to Perth the next day. After a month in Australia, winding up in Sydney, I was, however, less than thrilled to be subjected to 24 hours of flights to get back to the UK. Where was Musca when I needed her?.
.Any regrets? Well, I should have chosen to do an engine room visit in port rather than at sea, if only to make it easier to have a conversation – though it was reassuring to see the huge propeller shaft actually turning! Would I do such a voyage again? Without hesitation!.
.For details of how to book a cargo ship voyage with CMA CGM please contact Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on 020 7723 2450 or e-mail cruise@cruisepeople.co.uk.

CMA CGM has just announced its first passenger service from the new London Gateway container terminal in the Thames will be the Eurosal 1 service to Cartagena (Colombia), Punta Manzanillo (Panama), Callao (Peru) and Valparaiso (Chile), returning via Callao, Punta Manzanillo and Cartagena. European boarding ports include Rotterdam, Hamburg, London Gateway and Antwerp.

So far, one passenger-carrying ship, the CMA CGM Sambhar (above) has been assigned to this service, although another chartered vessel, the Balthasar Schulte, also carries passengers. CMA CGM Sambhar counts five double cabins in her accommodations so she can take a maximum of ten (10) passengers.

Sample fares on the new service are €1,650 from London to Cartagena, €2,420 from London to Callao and €2,860 from London to Valparaiso, all per person in double occupacncy. The full round voyages is 56 days and costs €6,160 per person double and €6,720 single. The Single Supplement is about 9.1%.

The six new deep-water berths at London Gateway will add 3.5 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) to the UK’s port capacity to handle the largest new ships, so expect more sailings from here in future. Routes to Brazil and Argentina will be next.

For further details please call Miri Lopusna at The Cruise People Ltd in London on 020 7723 2450 or e-mail cruise@cruisepeople.co.uk.

For a world cruise that’s different, you can try the French Line CMA CGM. Its Columbus Loop service now offers a total of nine partial world cruises in each direction throughout the year, with the 89,787-ton CMA CGM Dalila, built in 2011, and 90.931-ton CMA CGM Figaro and CMA CGM La Scala, built in 2010.

These three ships run between New York, Norfolk and Savannah on the East Coast and Seattle and Vancouver on the West Coast, sailing by way of the Suez Canal, or sometimes the Cape of Good Hope, and ports in Malaysia, China, South Korea and Japan.

The only thing is that one must travel by train or plane between the two coasts of the United States in order to complete the full round-the-world circuit.

Ports of call on the way out from New York include Tanjung Pelepas, Hong Kong, Yantian, Shanghai and Pusan, and in the opposite direction back from Seattle, Yokohama, Shanghai, Ningbo, Hong Kong, Yantian and Tanjung Pelepas.

These modern container ships carry seven (7) passengers each in three double cabins and one single. They come equipped with indoor swimming pools, and meals are taken in the officers’ mess. The fare of €100 per person per day includes full board, port charges, deviation insurance and complimentary French table wine with lunch and dinner. CMA CGM Dalila and CMA CGM Figaro fly the French flag, while CMA CGM La Scala is registered in London.

Part voyages are also possible but the full 112-day round voyage from New York to Seattle and back, or vice versa, costs €11,200 (about $15,495 or £10,075). New York to Seattle is €6,000 (about $8,300 or £5,395) for 60 days and Seattle to New York €5,200 (about $7,195 or £4,675) for 52 days.

The next sailings from New York are by CMA CGM La Scala on August 7, CMA CGM Figaro on September 16 and CMA CGM Dalila on September 30, followed by CMA CGM La Scala again on November 25. Sailings from Seattle are by CMA CGM Dalila on August 8, CMA CGM La Scala on October 3, CMA CGM Figaro on November 14 and CMA CGM Dalila again on November 28. Departues from Vancouver take place three (3) days after Seattle and one-way fares to New York are €300 ($415 or £270) lower per person.

For further details please call Miri Lopusna at passenger agents The Cruise People Ltd in London on 020 7723 2450 or e-mail cruise@cruisepeople.co.uk.